United States: Men and women from across the United States have ventured to Marine Corps Recruit Depot Parris Island, S.C., longing for the opportunity to earn the title, United States Marine, since 1915.
To succeed, recruits must complete a demanding 13 week training program ultimately ending in the culminating event of recruit training, the Crucible.
Originating in 1996 under the direction of the 31st Commandant of the Marine Corps, Gen. Charles C. Krulak, the Crucible was designed to be a culminating event that would serve as the final test of the mental, physical, and moral capabilities that recruits have developed up to that point in training.
The Crucible is a grueling 54-hour event that marks the transformation from civilian to United States Marine. Consisting of several main events, combat endurance courses, low-light combat simulations, and more, the Crucible is the ultimate test of a recruit’s physical and mental fortitude.
Along with this, working as a team under simulated combat conditions, with limited access to food and sleep, recruits must finish all this before beginning the final event of the Crucible.
Beginning at 0215, the 50th hour of the Crucible, recruits set off on a 12-mile hike to the Iwo Jima monument, where they will watch their nation’s colors rise, before receiving the Marine Corps’ most cherished emblem.
After receiving the Eagle, Globe and Anchor, the nation’s newest Marines are welcomed into the Marine Corps through a speech, remembered by all, from their company first sergeant; “That chill you felt as you watched our nation’s colors rise, and your drill instructor placed that Eagle, Globe and Anchor into the palm of your hand, was the fusion of our core values into your hearts and souls forever.”
Furthermore, upon completion of the Crucible, the transformation is complete and the recruits have earned the title, United States Marine.
